(GRAMMY winners Earth, Wind & Fire were honored with The Recording Academy's 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award. The following tribute is featured in the 58th GRAMMY Awards program book. Earth, Wind & Fire founder Maurice White died Feb. 4 at age 74).

Earth, Wind & Fire were established by Maurice White in Chicago in 1969 with the vision of spirituality and universal love. From their 1971 sellf-titled debut album and classics such as 1975's That's The Way Of The World and 1976's Spirit to 2013's Now, Then & Forever, they have helped bridge the gap between the music tastes of all ethnicities.

With songs like "Shining Star," "September," "Reasons," and "Let's Groove," Earth, Wind & Fire moved the music world one song at a time. This funky talented group are not only considered one of the best in the R&B genre, but they incorporated elements of jazz, pop, disco, soul, and even rock into their timeless music, selling more than 90 million albums worldwide. Along the way, the gifted group became the first African-American act to sell out Madison Square Garden in New York.

Maurice White, Verdine White, Philip Bailey, Ralph Johnson, Larry Dunn, Johnny Graham, Al McKay, Fred White, and Andrew Woolfolk collaborated to create this rich, eclectic sound, with a plethora of instruments and the goal of uniting all in peace and harmony.

As we all know, this universally appreciated group has received numerous accolades for their relentless leadership in music, and I am honored to celebrate their Lifetime Achievement Award.

(As one-half of the six-time GRAMMY-winning duo OutKast, Big Boi performed the group's chart-topping hit "The Way You Move" with Earth, Wind & Fire at the 46th GRAMMY Awards in 2004. The following year he was featured on "This Is How I Feel," a track included on Earth, Wind & Fire's album Illumination. Big Boi's solo work includes 2012's Vicious Lies And Dangerous Rumors. In 2015 he released Big Grams, a collaborative album with electronic rock duo Phantogram.)